Automatic mail-box hanger.



L. VANHOOF.

AUTOMATIC MAIL BOX HANGER.

APPLICATION FILED IULY 12. 1911.

1 ,273,696. Patented July 23, 1918.

5 MAIL L flaw hoof,

LOUIS VANHOOF, OF ALEXANDRIA, LOUISIANA,

AUTOMATIC MAIL-BOX HANGER.

Application filed. July 12, 1917.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, LOUIS VANI-IOOF, a citizen of the United States, residing at Alexandria, in the parish of Rapides and State of Louisiana, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Automatic Mail-Box Hangers; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to rural free delivery box supports and has for its primary object to provide means for supporting a rural mail box, so that the same can be easily reached by the mail carrier.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved rural mail box supporting means, which includes an arm for carrying th mail box that projects outwardly toward the road-way, so that the mail carrier can conveniently reach the mail box without getting out of the vehicle, and crossing the ditches which are usually formed on each side of a road-way.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a swinging arm supporting the mail box so that the persons desiring to remove the mail from the box can swing the same away from the road-way and across the ditch to where he is standing.

A still further object of the invention is the provision of automatic means for returning and holding the swinging arm across the road-Way so that the arm Wlll be normally positioned within convenient reach of the mail carrier.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a rural mail box support of the above character, which is durable and ellicient in use, one that is simple and easy to manufacture, and one that can be placed upon the market at a reasonable price.

With these and other objects in view, the invention consists in the novel construction, arrangement and formation of parts, as will be hereinafter specifically described, claimed, and illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which- Figure 1 is a side elevation of the improved mail box support, showing parts of the same in section, and

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the mail box support, showing a portion of the arm being broken away.

Referring to the drawing in detail, where- Speeification of Letters Patent.

Patented July 23, 1918.

Serial No. 180,215.

in similar reference numerals designate corresponding parts throughout the several views, the numeral 1 generally indicates the improved mail box supporting means, which is adapted to be positioned ,on the bank 2 of the ditch 3, which lies on one side of a road-way 1. j

The improved mail box support includes a post 5 which is adapted to be embedded in the bank 2 of the ditch 3 in the usual manner and has secured thereto an upstanding bolt 6 which is threaded into the upper surface thereof as at 7. Pivotally mounted on the bolt 6 and resting on the upper surface of the post 5 is a horizontal arm 8 which extends at right angles from each side of the post 5. The arm 8 includes the relativelylong portion 9 which is adapted to project from the front face of the post 5 and a relatively short portion 10 which projects from the rear portion of the post 5. An expansion coil spring 11 is wound around the bolt 6 and bears against the washer 12 resting against the upper surface of the arm 8 and against the Washer 13 resting against the head of the bolt and this spring normally tends to hold the arm 8 in frictional engagement with the upper surface of the post 5. A horizontal bar 1-1 is secured preferably by bolts at its central portion to the front face of the post 5 which faces the road 1 and has secured thereto adjacent each end thereof an open eye bolt 15 which receives one end of the contractile coil springs 16 which are secured at their opposite ends to staples 17, which are secured on each side of the portion 9 of the arm 8 and these springs normally tend to hold the arm across the ditch 3 toward the road 1. A mail box 18 of the ordinary or any preferred type is secured by any preferred type of fastening means 19 to the free end of the portion 9 of the arm 8. To overcome the weight of the mail box 18 and the long portion 9 of the arm 8, a contractile coil spring 20 is provided and this coil spring has one end secured to an eye-bolt 21 fastened in the post 5 and the opposite end to an eyebolt 22 fastened to the free end of the portion 7 10 of the arm 8. Thiscoil spring 20 normally keeps the arm 8 in a horizontal position, and relieves a considerable strain off of the bolt 6. The eye-bolts 21 and 22 havenuts 23 threaded on their free ends and the same holds the bolts to the post 5 and the arm 8 respectively.

In use, the improved mail box support is positioned in the manner illustrated in Fig. 1 and the mail carrier delivering the mail can conveniently reach the mail box 1 8 without dismounting from his vehicle as the arm 8 projects from the bank 2 of the ditch 3 out over the road-way 4:. When it is desired to remove the mail from the box, it'is'merely .necesssary to push on the portion10 of the.

arm 8 so as to swing the mail box 18 across the ditch 3 to the bank 10, where the mail can be conveniently reached by the persons desiring'to remove the same,'and-the springs 16 will immediately return the arm 8 to its normal position when released. The arm 8 is also pivoted in the above described manner so that in case any one riding along the road not notlcing the same,'would ride into the arm, the same would give and swing j away from the person hitting the same.

In reducing the invention to practice, cer- Copies of this patent may be obtained for In a device of the class described, a supporting post embedded at one side of a roadway, a horizontal arm pivotally supported by said post and projecting toward-saidroadway, spring means 'norma ly tending to hold said arm projecting toward said road-Way,

and spring means for frictionally holding said arm in engagement with said post. In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

V r 7 ,Louis vANHoor.

Witnesses: 4 a p a Gus. L. ALIE'ORD,

BELLE CoULsoN.

five cents each,v by addressing the Commissioner of rams, Washington, D. 0." v r 

